Two Sides of the Same Coin
by BellaBloodrayne
Summary: When Hydra is responsible for the death of the one person she loved, Alexandria Chase must track down the only man she knows can help her - The Winter Soldier. After much debate, he realizes he can't do it alone and works with her to take Hydra down. They help each other in more ways than one and struggle with the challenges they pose one another. Set after Winter Soldier. Bucky/OC
1. So It Begins

**A/N: This is the first chapter of my ****_Two Sides of the Same Coin_****story! It was an idea I got after watching Captain America: Winter Soldier and decided to run with! I apologize for the short length – this is more of a prologue or intro than anything. Please feel free to leave your feedback and let me know what you think – as always, I value every word you have for me! I will do my best to add more chapters as soon as I can.**

For those of you waiting for an update on **_All That They Know_**** – ****I'm still alive! I have had one mishap after the other when it comes to work, school, and my stupid laptop. But I promise I am finally working on the next chapters and will have updates on that story soon! Thank you for your patience!**

Now read on, my darlings, and enjoy! 

**Disclaimer: I only own Alexandria and this story line.**

* * *

It was crowded today. People buzzed around him, wrapped in their own worlds as he looked at the face on the monument that stared back at him; _his_ face. He tried to remember when that photo may had been taken and couldn't. He tried to remember the life that face belonged to and couldn't. He tried to remember _anything_ from, well, before… and couldn't.

Maybe there was a flash of a memory here and there, or a sense of familiarity sometimes, but nothing he could use. He didn't know why he continued to come back to the Captain America exhibit at the museum, didn't know why he continued to hope – if that's what you could even call what he was doing. All these visits seemed to do was leave him empty and feeling frustrated. He knew it was futile, but it was all he had to work with…

There was chatter all around him; the narrators voice that came from several different places, tourists oh-ing and ah-ing, kids cheering for the American hero and his band of merry men. It all blurred together to him though, as he had been trained to block out unnecessary distractions long ago. That is, until a melodic voice chirped up right next to him.

"So. Captain America… am I right?"

He glanced down and saw a woman staring at the monument – his monument – right next to him. She was alone, and he wondered who she was talking to until she glanced up at him. Unamused, he looked away, hoping she would leave him alone. He was not so fortunate.

"I mean the whole thing is just crazy if you ask me," she rambled. He saw her rocking on her heels as she spoke out of the corner of his eye. "Captain Rogers wakes up after so many years of being frozen, and it's a whole new world! I would go crazy." Annoyed now, he took a step away from the girl hoping she would get the hint and shut up. She sighed, but it was wistful. "And then there is James Buchanan Barnes." Hearing his full name made him go stiff and alert. Why was this woman speaking to him? "His best friend since child hood. It's sad isn't it? He was the only one of the Howling Commandos to die in battle." He was about to just turn and walk away, when her next words froze him. "Or did he?"

Looking back at the petite woman, he saw she was still looking at the giant glass memorial. Feeling threatened, he sized her up. She was short, especially next to him. She had a wild mane of blonde hair piled atop her head in a messy bun. From what he could tell she was unarmed, seeing as she was wearing skinny jeans and a hoodie, he didn't think she was hiding anything anywhere. As he was assessing her, she tilted her head to look up at him. When she met his eyes, a slow but knowing smile crept onto her face.

Quickly he processed his options; he could make a scene and take down the unimposing woman right then, or he could just leave. No one could keep up with him, so he knew she wouldn't be able to follow. He weighed the risk of her telling someone of her impossible discovery, but ruled that scenario out – no one would believe her. As far as the world was concerned, he had died many years ago. She was probably an agent for Hydra that had tracked him down. It took him all of three seconds to go with Option B.

Leaning close to the woman's face, he growled three words: "Leave me alone." And he took off. He headed for the closest exit, weaving through the thick crowd with ease. When he reached the door, he glanced back to see if she had tried following him, but couldn't spot her anywhere. Unnerved, he pushed the door open and bolted.

* * *

_Alexandria Marie Chase, you fucking did it._ She grinned to herself at this thought as she watched her target scan the crowd for her before quickly making his escape. She wasn't stupid; she knew she stood no chance of following him. But she had just taken her first real step in her mission.

She had been watching him for weeks now, trying to figure out some kind of a pattern. Bucky Barnes was the ultimate super soldier and near impossible to find or spy on, but she had finally realized that he came to the museum three times a week at almost the same exact time. How Hydra hadn't found him yet was beyond her, but she thanked God they hadn't. She needed him, and she knew he would need her.

It had been a month since Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. had destroyed each other – as far as the world was concerned. Construction was still underway to repair the damage the helicarriers had caused the city, all of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets were out to the world, and a post-war peace seemed to blanket everyone.

But Alex knew – she knew that it was only a matter of time before S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra recovered. She knew that both organizations were much too powerful to be defeated for good. She knew that Hydra meant to make good on their belief and motto: "If they cut off one head, two more shall take its place." And she would be ready.

Leaving the museum, she shoved her hands inside her pockets and she took a breath of fresh air. Those thoughts were dark and full of menacing promise – and definitely for another time. She had just confronted the one and only man that could help her and had planted the seed for what was to come. This was a time for celebration! As she walked towards the park and watched the children play, she decided she would treat herself to some ice cream before heading back to her place. There was a smart ice cream vendor right in the middle of the park she knew had great choices. Checking her watch, she hoped her little love note had been found by now and smiled at the thought.

_Your move, Tin Man,_ she thought, paying the vendor for her treat.

* * *

There was no way she could have followed him, he just had to remember that. He didn't know why the chatty blonde had unnerved him so much, but the thought of her had him looking over his shoulder once more. _Knock it off,_ he ordered himself. He gave himself a shake as he approached his makeshift home – an abandoned house in the bad part of the city.

As he walked up the steps and pried open the unhinged door, he ripped the itchy cap off before stuffing his hands in his pockets. Something crinkled – something that hadn't been there before. Yanking the thing out, he saw it was a small index card. One side had an address scrawled on it in bubbly handwriting. The other had a message that made his nostrils flare and metallic hand clench.

**_You need me._**


	2. Patience

**A/N: I hope you like chapter two! The chapters will continue to get longer as the story goes. I'm still testing the waters on this story, so bear with me.**

**Thank you taytayfanatical for reviewing! I hope I continue to intrigue you! As always, I would love to hear from anyone who reads!**

**If you enjoy The Walking Dead, feel free to go check out my ****_All That They Know_****story, too! Now read on!**

**Disclaimer: I own Alex and this story line.**

* * *

Alex stepped out of the renovated warehouse bathroom, a towel in hand as she dried her dripping hair. Humming to herself, she padded barefoot over the cement floor to her illuminated workstation. She checked the several screens that were constantly searching and scanning for any information she could use – any kind of sign that would point her towards Hydra. Seeing nothing new, she keyed in a couple of things to narrow her search before moving on. It was too late to get her brain active again.

She walked to the other side of the wide and open warehouse where she had a small kitchenette, tossing the damp towel on her recliner chair as she passed it. She needed tea desperately. Alex had hoped that a nice warm shower would have eased the nagging at the back of her mind, but it hadn't done its job.

It had been three days since she had supposedly started her "mission." And she had yet to see the fruits of her efforts develop. No word or sightings from Bucky, and she was beginning to grow restless and impatient. She thought her message had been pretty clear and self explanatory. Setting the now filled kettle on the stove, she leaned against the counter to wait.

Waiting. It seemed like that was what she did best nowadays, and she was getting sick of it. For the past month she had been working her ass off to get where she was today, and for what? To sit here and wait for things to just happen? She hugged her cotton robe tighter to her body, not liking that thought at all.

No, she would give the assassin a couple more days and then her waiting was over. Every day they waited was one more day Hydra got ahead. And that was just not an option.

The shrill whistle pulled her out of her thoughts. Getting to work, she prepped her favorite soothing drink.

She moved… fluidly, he decided. He wouldn't call it graceful, necessarily, but fluid. As she grabbed this or that from the little cabinets that were attached to the small side wall, he also thought she moved like a woman who had purpose.

He observed her through one of the many ceiling windows that lined the roof of the warehouse – the place her little directions had led him. Bucky didn't entertain emotions, but he had been mildly surprised to see where the young woman had apparently set up roots.

Curiosity flared up, making him wonder how a girl her age had wound up here, but he quickly snuffed it out. He was here to see how much of a threat she posed, and if somehow her little message had been true. So far, he was not impressed. She didn't have much from what he could see. The small tech station in the back corner looked about the only thing of any importance. The building itself wasn't even very notable – small by warehouse standards, especially in the large yard of surrounding buildings.

She moved away from the stove, steaming mug in hand, to go curl up in a ratty recliner that sat next to a long tan couch. Her attention was trained on a boxy television in front of her, though from his angle he couldn't see what she was watching. In the center of the building lay a large and slightly elevated mat that took up most of the room, several weights stacked neatly to one side of it. Against the long back wall was a table that housed a stereo set up.

And that was it.

There was nothing else.

Granted, he didn't know what lay behind some of the doors that were against every wall, but still. Though it appeared she wasn't in bad shape, she also didn't seem to have anything of value to him. So why would she claim that he needed her?

Ruling her out as any kind of threat, he took one last glace at her before turning to leave. He didn't know how she had found him, or how she even knew he was alive, but it wouldn't happen again.

**XXX**

Bucky walked out of the glass entrance to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, hat drawn low over his eyes and hands tucked in his pockets. His mind continued to remain blank, without any real trace of his former life coming back to him. It grew frustrating – to see the world revolving around him as if he didn't belong.

Hydra had all but erased his mind, leaving him empty. It was something he had once been grateful for, as it had allowed him to do his job flawlessly. Now, it clouded his mind and made him doubt the things he did remember. He never knew what was real or not…

He jogged down the steps before heading down Independence Avenue. It was warmer than it had been the past several days, and he wanted to get his heavy coat off as soon as possible. As he rounded the corner of the building, he heard a loud _snap_ of a gum bubble being popped, followed by a familiar voice.

"You don't call, you don't write."

Looking up, he saw the young blonde leaning against the side of the building, one leg bent at the knee. She wore her air down this time and it fell past her shoulders. He sneered before walking at a brisk pace in the opposite direction. This time, she did jog to catch up to him.

"I mean, I track you down – a dead man, by all accounts –, I muster up the courage to talk to you, and I leave a sneaky little note for you. What's a girl gotta do to get your attention? Or you do just like to play hard to get?"

She was practically running to keep up with him; which told her he was holding back. She shouldn't be able to keep up with him at all. Being outside in a very public place in the middle of the day must have had him not wanting to attract attention to himself. Because Alex knew damn well the Winter Soldier never held back.

When he continued to keep walking, she reached out for his arm. "Look, we need -"

He turned on her, making her jump back at his sudden stop. "What part of 'leave me alone' do you not understand?" There was no inflection in his voice, but she saw a storm brewing behind his almost black eyes.

Tilting her chin up, she didn't look away. "What part of 'you need me' do _you_ not understand?"

"I don't need anyone," he replied.

Alex had to chase after him again. "I don't have time for this bullshit, and neither do you. It's been over a week since I approached you and I'm done waiting for you to make a move. Every single day that passes is one day more for Hydra to -"

The ex soldier had been ignoring her, trying to calculate his best escape route on the crowded street. But something in him snapped at the mention of the organization that had toyed with him. He pushed her up against the nearest wall and pinned her there.

An arrow of fear shot through her system when she saw him raise his left arm. Looking down at the gloved hand, she knew what lie underneath the layers of clothing he wore, even if it weren't for the slightly painful pressure pushing on her chest.

"You don't know anything about Hydra," he snarled at her, face only inches from her own.

"Is there a problem here?"

The pair looked over to see a cop eyeing them suspiciously, hand on his holster. _Shit_, she thought. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Bucky's hand twitch toward his own hip, and Alex could only imagine what he was packing. Acting quick, she placed her hand over his gloved one and applied pressure, a pleasant smile on her face.

"Oh no, Officer. Not at all." She looked up at the assassin, smile still in place, and cocked an eyebrow at him. Grudgingly he removed his hand from her and took a step back, eyes alert. "My brother was just pissed because I told him I busted his favorite action figure the other day," she lied. Taking a step forward she chuckled and rolled her eyes. "It was worth a lot of money, I guess. I don't get the whole nerd thing myself."

The police officer stared them down for a moment longer before visibly relaxing. "Well, I can imagine why he'd be upset," he said to Alex. Then, gazing at Bucky, warned, "Just be careful and watch how physical you get."

Glancing back, she saw him give a curt nod. The officer bid them a good day before walking past them. Whipping around, she trained a glare on her target. "One of the many reasons you need me! That? That was called blending in, something you so incredibly suck at." He went to turn away from her again, but she saw it coming and moved in his path. "Why do you go to the museum all the time? Hmm? Because you can't remember who you are, right? Hydra took that from you; they erased the man you used to be and I can't imagine that _that_ was a fun process." She placed her hands on her hips. "But you can't take them down alone, not a chance in hell. They'd see you coming from a mile away, Barnes – especially the way you are now. I have information, ways of getting information I _don't_ have, I have resources, and I can blend. You want to take Hydra down? You're going to need my help to do it."

"Hydra was destroyed," he said skeptically.

She cocked an eyebrow and gave him an unconvinced. "You really believe that?"

Crossing his arms over his chest, he stared her down. She had brass, he would give her that. But it was hot out and he was annoyed. "What do _you_ want? Why are you desperate for this?"

She scowled at the term desperate. She wasn't desperate, just determined – there was a difference. But looking at his face, she decided to be upfront and honest instead of giving him a snappy comeback. "Because I need you, too." When he raised an eyebrow at her, she huffed out a breath. "Look, I might have the brains, but I don't know how to fight. And I can't take Hydra down just by having information. The whole damn world has information now. But the right intel with the right amount of strength? We'd actually stand a chance." Taking a step towards him, she had to crane her neck to look him in the eye. "We need each other, Bucky."

At her words, a small part of him started to believe her – however unhappy that thought made him.


End file.
